MACOMB, Ill. - After opening the season with six straight road contests, Fighting Leatherneck men's soccer finally returns to Macomb for the team's home-opener.
Western Illinois (1-5) welcomes Valparaiso (2-1-3) to John MacKenzie Alumni Field on Sunday at 1 p.m. as the Leathernecks will look to snap a four-game skid.
BREAKDOWN:
WHO: Western Illinois vs. Valparaiso
WHEN: Sunday, Sept. 22 at 1 p.m.
WHERE: John MacKenzie Alumni Field
LIVE STATS: Click HERE
MATCH NOTES:
A LOOK AT THE CRUSADERS: Valparaiso enters the game with a 2-1-3 record, after the team suffered its first loss of the season at No. 12-ranked Tulsa on Friday...Tulsa scored once in the first half and thrice in the second half to beat the Crusaders, 4-0...Valpo, like Western Illinois, played in the Mike Gibbs Memorial Invitational to open the season; the Crusaders tied both Jacksonville (0-0) and North Florida (1-1)...Valparaiso also tied former Summit League member Oakland (1-1), and defeated current Summit League program, IUPUI (2-1 2ot)...Todd Vervynct leads the team with six points on two goals and two assists...Tom Serratore has started five of Valpo's six games in goal, earning a 1-1-3 record, 1.20 goals against average and .767 save percentage.
SERIES HISTORY: The Leathernecks hold the 18-6-2 advantage in the all-time series against Valparaiso, a former conference foe...Out of all the programs WIU has played more than 15 times, the Leathernecks' winning percentage is best against the Crusaders (.731)...WIU's 18 wins against Valparaiso is tied for the most the team has against any program, as the Leathernecks have also beat UMKC 18 times...Western is 3-0-1 in the last four matchups, including a 1-0 win last year behind a Mario Alvarez goal, Charlie Bales assist and Yves Dietrich shutout.
THIS DATE IN HISTORY (Sept. 22): Two of the 14 Western Illinois hat tricks in the Division I era came on this date...In 2004, Nowaf Jaman scored three times against Eastern Illinois, twice assisted by Nick Bohnenkamp, in a 3-1 win...In 1984, Kevin Schmidt found the back of the net three times as the Leathernecks rolled to a 5-0 win at Missouri State, while the team took a Division I record 36 shots in the contest...In 2000, Troy Markin notched two goals and an assist as the Leathernecks topped Centenary, 3-0...Last year, WIU tied Omaha 1-1, as Nathan Bruinsma scored a goal, Charlie Bales tallied an assist, and Yves Dietrich made five saves...Western is 3-0-1 on this date since 1991.
LAST TIME OUT: Western Illinois allowed a goal less than five minutes into the match and was unable to find the equalizer in a 1-0 loss at regionally-ranked Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Thursday night...Yves Dietrich made a season-high seven saves and Mario Alvarez took a season-most five shots.
TOUGH COMPETITION: Five of the first six Western Illinois opponents have been unbeaten heading into the match against the Leathernecks...Western Illinois' first seven opponents all had one loss or less heading into the game against WIU.
RECORD BOOK MOVEMENT: By recording his fifth career shutout at Jacksonville, Yves Dietrich moves into a three-way tie for ninth in program history...With a total of 122 career saves, he sits tied for ninth in saves per game (4.52), fourth in goals against average (1.24), and fourth in save percentage (.777)...Since individual shot on goal statistics started being recorded in 2002, Husref Jupic ranks seventh in the program with 47.
ATOP THE SUMMIT: Several Leathernecks rank at the top of the conference in statistical categories...Diego Lopez and Husref Jupic are tied for the lead in goals, with two apiece...Yves Dietrich is first in saves (32), and second in save percentage (.780) and goals-against average (1.49).
NATIONAL RANKINGS: Keeper Yves Dietrich ranks 11th in the nation in saves (32), 20th in saves per game (5.33). and 85th in save percentage (.780).
WHO SCORES FIRST?: Since the start of the 2012 season, the Leathernecks are 8-1-0 when scoring first; however, if an opponent scores first, Western Illinois is just 0-12-3 in that same time frame.
TOUGH LUCK: Since the start of the 2012 season, 10 of the Leathernecks' 14 losses have come by just one goal, including four of the five defeats this season.
GREAT DEBUT: Freshman Diego Lopez had a stellar debut weekend in Purple & Gold...He scored both Western Illinois goals, including his first collegiate goal at North Florida, and his first career game-winning goal at Jacksonville...His efforts earned him The Summit League's first 'Offensive Player of the Week' award of the season.
PRESEASON ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE: Charlie Bales, Drew Edmond and Austin Gochneaur were named to the College Sports Madness Preseason All-League Team...Bales earned a First Team nod, while Edmond and Gochneaur received Second Team honors.
WINNING LEGACY: Dr. Eric Johnson is the Summit League's all-time winningest coach, totaling 137 wins through his time at the helm at Western Illinois...He has earned the conference's 'Coach of the Year' award four times.
Projected Starters:
